Help Noah Load His Ark with ‘Animals on Board’

A disaster of biblical proportions has been brewing all over the sea, and only you can help Noah save the animals of the earth. He has overslept, but the waters continue to rise, and with his ark adrift offshore, you must help him carefully load the animals one-by-one in Animals on Board by Meteor Creations Inc. To get those animals on board the ark, you must help Noah skillfully fling every creature onto his ship.

Because of Animals on Board’s Game Center integration, users will first be prompted to either login with their existing account or to create a new account, though it is not necessary to do so. (Access to Game Center, however, will also provide access to the available leaderboards and achievements.) You will then arrive at the main menu, where you will be able to choose from one of the three available game play modes: Free Play, Time Attack and 2-player mode. The Game Center button will obviously allow you to reconnect with Game Center itself, while Settings will allow you to choose your language and sound effects preferences. For training and game playing tips, head to the More button, where you can monitor your zoo, learn the right moves, and even check out another application by this very developer.

During Free Play mode, users will help Noah fling as many animals as possible onto the ark, piling them on top of each other as strategically as possible so the boat will not tip or capsize. Just pull back the animal in Noah’s hands and let it fly. If two of the same animal land touching each other, babies will result and appear on the ark as well. Adjust the power of your toss based on where you wish for the animal to land, for it is possible to overshoot and have the animal land in the water. Three animals in the water equate to three strikes, ending your current game. Users’ accomplishments are based upon how many animals they manage to stack and the height of the pile.

With Time Attack mode, users may choose from any of the three variations: Animals, Height and Pairs. ‘Animals’ requires users to pile as many animals as they can onto the ark within 60 seconds. ‘Height’ requires users to create the tallest animal pile possible within 60 seconds. And 2-player, of course, allows two people to play against each other (on the same device), taking turns flinging animals onto the ark. As a Noah versus Shem battle, the one who causes the ark to capsize and topple first automatically loses.

Animals on Board takes a few tries to get used to as you learn how to adjust your toss, but once you get the hang of the controls, you do tend to want to keep trying to out do yourself. (In fact, tossing the animals too far or not far enough tends to be my personal failing point.) Of course, the high flinging fun can quickly lose its appeal once the task of stacking these creatures becomes a bit too tedious and repetitive, but it certainly holds promise for those who enjoy a new challenge.

Animals on Board [iTunes Link] requires iPhone OS 3.1.3 or later and is compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. A small expedite fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.